The US Conference of Catholic Bishops is suing Donald Trump, over executive orders to cut refugee aid.
For over fifty years, the USCCB has partnered with the US Department of State’s Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, in its efforts to resettle refugees.
Now, their budget has been slashed – prompting them to file a District Court lawsuit in Washington, DC.
The USCCB has historically received “around $65 million in federal funding”. Yet in January, the president issued a freeze on foreign aid grants.
The USCCB claims it received a two-page letter informing them of the cuts, when they had already made commitments to refugees in accordance with their usual budget. They describe it as like having the "rug pulled" from under their operations.
The suit states: “USCCB has already been forced to initiate layoffs for 50 employees.
“It faces irreparable damage to its long-standing refugee resettlement programs and its reputation and relationship with its subrecipients and the refugee populations it serves.”
Last month, Vice President JD Vance – who himself identifies as Catholic – accused the bishops of caring more about pocketing cash than housing displaced people.
Speaking to Face the Nation, he said: “As a Catholic… I think that the US Conference of Catholic Bishops needs to actually look in the mirror a little bit and recognize that when they receive over $100 million to help resettle illegal immigrants, are they worried about humanitarian concerns? Or are they actually worried about their bottom line?
“I think the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has, frankly, not been a good partner in commonsense immigration enforcement that the American people voted for, and I hope, again, as a devout Catholic, that they'll do better."